All around me are... not so familiar faces?

I have been working at Parlor City for, well, a while now. This would be my second summer working there, and so far it has been quite interesting.

So when I started up the second season, about a couple months ago, things were a little shaky. I won't go into details, but a lot of unnecessary problems occured with me or someone else, making things difficult. I basically started off the year on the wrong foot, and I have been trying to get back on gear to have another good summer with it. Right now, things have been going fantastic, but there have been a lot of changes.

One thing is a lot of my employees have left. Some for other jobs, some for school work, and others have been... well you know, terminated. There are honestly only five or six people left that I know and like, and now my boss has hired a couple new people. It has been kind of hard for me to get to know new people because they know way less than me, which puts pressure on me and kind of tests me to know what I am doing and if I have been doing things right this whole time, when they would ask how to do this or make that. For instance, this one new guy asked me how to make a parfait. I had honestly never made one in my whole life, so I sort of winged it and told him what I thought he should do. Luckily, the dessert turned out good, but I was just lucky that time. Anyways, when I saw all these new names in the schedule, I began to get stressed. There are so many new people and I now have to work harder to help them get on track, while still making sure that I myself don't mess up! I freaked myself out, but I really never needed to and still don't.

Last night, I worked with these new girl named Rachel. As I walked into work for my shift, I saw her standing there kind of dumbfoundedly. She turned and asked me "Where do I put my things, its me first night?" Right away I thought, great, she is brand new and doesn't even know where to set her phone! Plus, the weather was nice and there were only a couple of us. It was going to be so busy! I started preparing myself for possibly the worse night of my life... but that soon faded. The girl turned out to be really cool, and we were all actually getting along. Plus, the night wasn't even too busy, so everything just worked out!

I realized that, if I am just patient and am nice to these new people, things will go down smoothly. I just have to keep remembering my first day, and how I loved it when they were nice to me.

Always treat others how you want to be treated!

Thank you, mother.

Ohhh you deadly parfait. So complicated.

Summer

Summer! Summer summer summer summer PLEASE come to me!

I miss the late week nights.

Hanging out with someone everyday.

Basically being free.

But wait... don't think that'll be my summer anymore.

So once school ends, I am officially going to be a senior. Wow. Really? So I am really excited because I know next year is going to be amazing... yet there is so much to do! I am going to be working extra this summer, trying to get more money in that little piggy bank of mine. Plus, I have a babysitting job, where a couple days a week I have to watch two little crazy girls from eight in the morning, till dinner time. So basically, there isn't going to be as much free time as I thought there would be. Then I realize, oh yeah! Last summer I did this exact same thing and it wasn't even bad, at all! Oh, but oh yeah Rachel. You are going to be gone looking at colleges and trying to figure out your future along the way, as well as these two little jobs of yours. Fantastic.

Why do I have to grow up so fast? I was talking with one of my good friends the other day, and she was telling me about how much she wished to be little kid again. I kept thinking, why? I love being grown up and doing what I do today. Then I think about and I start to agree with her. There were no worries when you were a kid. Everything was given to you, you never had to work hard, and you were free. It just sucks so much! I remember wanting to grow up so bad! Why does every kid do that? Why is life like this? You know, things are really unfair sometimes.

Well, I know this summer may be my busiest ever... but I am going to make it worth while. Stress free, that is gonna be me!

I am content

Last week was our going out concert, and for many, it was very emotional. But honestly, why does it have to be like that? Why does everyone always have to cry? I really have mixed emotions about this because it depends on who the person is that gets all worked up.

So there are the seniors. They have been in showchoir for, what, four years? More? Sometimes less, and it really doesn't matter. Either way, it is their last year of being in such a high honored group, and they have every right to be sad. When this last performance comes, it is the seniors last time to do what they love. To do this one last performance with the people they have come close to. So for those seniors who bawl their eyes out and go insane, I guess they have every right. But when it comes to people like, well me, things are so different.

I am really, well oddly, emotional. There are times where things just really move me, or affect me, and I just break down and cry. But those times come only but rarely; I can honestly say that I am not an emotional person. So when the going out concert came, I thought to myself that I was going to cry. I knew that I would and am really going to miss the seniors that I got close to, and the rough year that we went through, so I truly thought it was all going to be so hard. The concert was over, and even as I hugged those who left tears of mascara on my shoulder, I had no urge to cry whatsoever. I felt so cold-hearted! So out of place! It kind of hurt me that I wasn't really sad about all of this, but then I realized something. You don't have to be so emotional. Why do you? So many of them asked me, "Aren't you going to miss the seniors? How can you not cry?" And I thought about it. Well, you see friends, I am going to miss them all, but that doesn't mean I have to be all emotional to show it. I am who I am.

To answer my question about why everyone has to be so emotional and why do they have to cry... well, it is their way of showing how much it means to them, blah blah. For those who can't cry and be emotional, in times like this, well... I am with ya! We have emotion, just sometimes can't show it in the normal kind of ways.

It's... adventure time!

There is this show; a very good show. Some might know it, but others may question it. This show, is THE show. It makes you laugh, it is a good show, and it makes you laugh. This show... is the MISADVENTURES OF FLAPJACK.

I haven't watched cartoon network in years. I remember when I used to watch scooby doo and courage the cowardly dog like twenty-four seven, but that was when I was really young. Then when Nickelodeon came around, following disney channel, I lost touch with it. I finall started watching adult swim, but I still never considered that to be anywhere near cartoon network. One random day, when my brother was home visiting from college, he was watching cartoon network. He always watches weird shows, so I didn't really pay much attention to it, until he told me to watch. I was really bored, so I listened to him and actually watched it. As I was watching, I kept thinking to myself... this is really weird? While my brother was sitting next to me, laughing every two seconds, I was still trying to figure out what was even going on in the show.

This little boy, named Flapjack, supposedly was living in a huge whale with his old friend, Knuckles. They go on adventures all the time and everything that goes on in the show makes no sense. So as I figured this all out, I kept thinking, how is this even funny or good? All of a sudden, it all clicked with me. This is actually really, really funny. And why is it funny? Because it's so stupid and ridiculus... hello like spongebob! I fell in love.

So I started watching it everyday when I came home from school. Turned on my television to cartoon network and wa la!!! An hour of Flapjack. So as time went on, I would hang out with my friends and if it would be on, we'd watch it; no questions asked. One day, I was at my boyfriends house, and it came on. Him and his brother were freaking out because they thought it was THE stupidest thing ever, but I made them watch it. They kept saying how ridiculus it was, but as they literally were saying this, they were laughing at the same time. Success!!! Today, he still says how dumb it is... but I know deep down he thinks it is hilarious!

So this show just makes me happy.

Almost the end

School is slowly coming to an end. It truly is weird to think about, and I honestly don't know why. I have always been really relaxed through each year I've spent in school. I mean there have been numerous times where I've felt like I was going to kill myself because of that one test or project, but other than that it was all steadily normal if you know what I mean. By the end of each year, I was kind of sad to see it all go. Like, even the classes and schoolwork, because for the majority of the time I had fun with it all. So this year, because things have been so different, I have just been wanting the year to be over so badly and I don't even care.

This year has been extremely hard for an exceeded amount of reasons. One reason is that it has been my first year taking an AP class, and I am taking TWO of them. So that is not a lot and shouldn't be that difficult, but at times it just gets so overwhelming! Basically, I have learned that with these classes, you get homework or work to do and are given a date and then done. You have to plan it out on your own and work on it the best you can, no real motivation in hand. I mean you have to learn to do work without teachers being like, okay come on lets go, lets go! You can do it, come on! It really got to me, just how much I based my work ethics on people motivating me to do things. So yeah, I have been overwhelmed a lot by these classes, but I have learned a lot about myself and how I can work on my own.

Another thing is the extra cirriculars. I have been spending soooo much time with Happiness Inc., speech team, and tennis, practicing, along with my friends, AND especially with a special person. With that special person, some nights I just am lazy and would rather hang out with them or other people instead of doing some homework. It has made me so behind that I don't know what to do with myself. The work just keeps coming and coming that, in the end, I just want it all to stop!

Thats why I really just need this year to end. I have one more year here and I want it to be THE best year ever, but I need to be working hard and balancing my time like I could have done better this year.

The volcanic ash that almost made us miss our plane date and have to wait extra days to go to Ireland. That would have stunk!!

Mother's Day, Hooray!

Mother's Day is such a, well, regular day. What happened?

When I was little, our family used this day as a HUGE celebration for our family. Of course, my mom got all these roses and cards from us (mine always being the best) and we would go out and do everything together.

I remember this one year, I might have been six or seven, and my dad had this big reservation for our family. After our church service, we were forced to get all dressed up and ready because we were going to eat at a big mother's day brunch in this huge center. I can't really remember the details, but I just know there were a bunch of other dressed up familys and that I ate a lot of food. Very good food, of course.

This year, it crept up on me. I was working at my job about three days ago, and one of my work friends was like, "What are you getting your momma for momma's day?". I started freaking out! I had nooo idea what to get her or anything because I had no time to go and shop for something nice, and I also found out that I had to work mother's day, basically the whooole day. So for the rest of my shift, I was trying to figure it all out. What is quick and easy to get, but also thoughtful and nice? Hmmm? All of a sudden, one of my other work friends walks in and starts making a quart of yogurt and writing happy mother's day on it. BRILLIANT. I knew my mom loved our yogurt that we make, and with me working on Mother's day, I could just buy it on my way out so she would never see it!

So today, I worked and grapped a half-gallon of strawberry yogurt, her favorite, and drove home. Running inside, I put the yogurt in the freezer and called my mom upstairs. Before I knew it, she was smiling and happy, so surprised that I had gotten this for her!

Mission accomplished.

Auditions amiss

While in Ireland, the big auditions were taking place. You know, the ones for Happiness and all it's guts and glory; I was missing them. Right before I left, I was getting caught up in trying to get all my school work from teachers so I wouldn't be behind, that I wasn't thinking twice about what other things I was going to miss. Then, my choir teacher announced a reminder on the dance and singing auditions, and I froze.

What should I do?

These are huge, I can't just miss them?

Great, now I won't be in Happiness for my senior year and everything is ruined (a little much, oh well)

I kept thinking all these things, but of course, I was over analyzing the situation. Before I jumped to anymore conclusions, I went up to the teacher and talked to him about it. He, without much emotion, was perfectly fine with the situation.

"I know how you sing and dance, Rachel. Don't even worry about it."

Woo! A big weight lifted off my shoulders! I still had to do a singing audition when I got back, but that was perfectly fine with me.

Then, another thing came up that was gradually... a bummer.

A couple weeks before my vacation, I was going through my usual daily schedule. School, tennis, bed. While walking onto the tennis courts one normal day, someone came up to me and told me that I had a tube of tennis balls with my name on it. I stood there, staring at her like, what? I was so confused! She pointed them out, and I started walking towards them with this gut feeling that, well, I knew what it was all about. I didn't want it to be that though, not at all, because I have known since the beginning of the year that I was going to miss prom. I shook it off, and picked up the tube. There it was, my full name on a little piece of paper that was folded. I opened the paper, which said "open can", and so I opened the can. Three tennis balls fell out: one said P R, the next had an 0 and M, and the last had a question mark and a number.

Shoot.

Crap.

Uh what.

The whole rest of the practice, I was freaking out. I wanted to go soo badly, but I couldn't! And I also felt bad knowing that now the person who asked me would have to go find someone else, and that wouldn't be fun for me if I was in that position.

In the end, I talked with him and it was all cool. He found another fun date and it was all good!

Moral of the story: I probably should have left at a different time of the year, am I right?